A pioneering therapeutic cancer vaccine, publicly funded by the Medical Research Council, has been administered to a UK patient for the first time in an early-stage clinical trial. The personalised treatment is designed to match the unique genetic changes found in a patient’s tumour, with researchers hoping it will help the immune system recognise and attack cancer cells more effectively.
How the personalised vaccine is being tested
The trial will involve ten participants with advanced non-small cell lung cancer and is being overseen by clinicians and scientists at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre and the University of Liverpool, including the Liverpool Clinical Trials Centre. Researchers say the study will assess safety and look for early signs that the vaccine may trigger an immune response against this common cancer.
According to the researchers, the treatment uses advanced computational technologies developed by biopharmaceutical company myNEO to identify tumour targets for the immune system. Those targets are then manufactured into a vaccine using an innovative cell-free process known as ‘doggybone DNA’ (dbDNA), which is intended to speed up production and lower costs compared with more traditional methods. UKRI report
A patient story at the centre of the study
The first patient, Chris Jones from Hoylake on the Wirral, was referred for tests after a persistent cough and breathlessness. She had advanced lung cancer that had only partially responded to standard immunotherapy, and was offered the chance to join the NEOVACC clinical trial. She received her first dose at Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, Liverpool, using PharmaJet’s Stratis system, a needle-free injection device.
Chris will continue to receive further doses over several months alongside standard immunotherapy treatment. Researchers hope the approach may help patients benefit from treatment for longer, while also opening the door to a broader generation of personalised cancer therapies.
Public funding and future potential
The Medical Research Council provided a £2.66 million grant through its Proof of Concept scheme to support the work. MRC said the trial is an example of how public investment can help translate scientific discoveries into potential new treatments, bringing together researchers, NHS clinicians and industry partners. The study is led by Professor Christian Ottensmeier and Professor Natalia Savelyeva at the University of Liverpool.
Researchers involved in the project say the approach could eventually help more than half of patients with advanced lung cancer, and possibly patients with other solid tumours as well. While the trial is still at an early stage, its launch marks a notable step in the effort to develop bespoke cancer vaccines tailored to each patient’s disease. MRC news
For now, the focus remains on safety, immune response and whether this personalised method can add a new option for patients whose disease has not responded fully to existing immunotherapy. If the results are promising, the research could help shape the next phase of personalised cancer treatment in the UK and beyond.
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